Unknown

Unknown by Unknown Page A

Book: Unknown by Unknown Read Free Book Online
Authors: Unknown
Ads: Link
she found herself saying, and then, in a little rush: “You were quite right. Your brother would not tell lies to get you a job—even if you asked him to!”
    Charles ignored the final slur on his own character and even grinned a little, mentally, at it.
    “Thank you for saying that!” he said, and added: “I always feel that my relations are the best recommendations I could possibly have! The only bother is that they take a bit of living up to!”
    Judith nodded silently, and since she had obviously something more to say, Charles did not interrupt whatever train of thought it was which was occupying her. At last she said slowly:
    “They are very happy together, aren’t they?” Charles’s blue eyes became both more alert and intent. So she had seen that, had she? Well, after all, one could hardly miss it unless one was absolutely blind to such things. The only thing was, he had thought Judith was blind.
    “Very happy,” he agreed. “So happy that—” he broke off abruptly and wheeled sharply. Judith had come down to the farm buildings to deliver her message and now, suddenly, he heard a furtive sound.
    “Yes?” he said sharply and from round the corner of the barn young Joe Sellars put in a sheepish appearance.
    Charles’s eyes narrowed. How long had the boy been there? And how much had he heard? It was not that anything had been said which really mattered, but the Sellars family were noted for their gift of manufacturing gossip if it did not actually exist and, in any case, the fact that the two of them were talking alone together would be quite enough—after all, he knew perfectly well that his name and Judith’s had already been linked together in the village. With the feeling that there was against Judith it needed very little to turn ordinary village curiosity into a scandal.
    “Why aren’t you down in the Five Acre?” Charles demanded. “It isn’t your time yet, you know!”
    Joe grinned sheepishly and held up a large oil can he was carrying.
    “Must be a leak,” he explained. “Tom sent me back to get more because there’s a squeak in the tractor!”
    “Right!” Charles said shortly. “Well, don’t use the same can or we’ll lose more oil! And get a move on!”
    “Yessir!” Joe said more smartly, and touched his forehead ingratiatingly to Judith. “Glad to see you back, miss!” he said and shot a sly look at Charles as if to say: “I expect you are too!” But Charles took a step in the direction of the boy and he scuttled off about his business.
    Judith was frowning faintly. She had realised that there was more than a hint of tension in the situation, but she could not understand what it was all about. She was not particularly partial to the Sellars family, but young Joe did not work too badly and that was something to be thankful for these days.
    “Weren’t you rather down on him?” she suggested, but far more mildly than she would have done a very short while back.
    “Yes!” Charles agreed without hesitation. “He needs to know that he can’t take liberties!”
    “But has he?” Judith asked.
    Charles looked at her thoughtfully. What a child she was in so many ways, in spite of her undoubted ability. Didn’t she realise—no, he was sure she did not, and he certainly was not going to open her eyes to what existed only in the unpleasant minds of other people.
    “He has been turning up a bit late every morning and pushing off early, no doubt to make up for it!” he explained quite truthfully. “We can’t allow that, you know!”
    “No,” Judith admitted, evidently relieved at the simplicity of the explanation. “We can’t have that!”
    “Now,” Charles said briskly, determined to get away from the subject before he could be asked any more awkward explanations, “I expect you would like to know all that has gone on while you have been away. Shall we go up to the office?”
    They spent an intensive hour going over everything that had happened, the dark head and

Similar Books

Girlchild

Tupelo Hassman

Caged Eagles

Eric Walters

New Game in Town

Cora Lee Gill

First Strike

Craig Simpson

Octobers Baby

Glen Cook

Freddy the Pied Piper

Walter R. Brooks

Need to Know

Karen Cleveland

The Art of Retaliation

Arabella Kingsley